St Kilda is building musselJason Tanti | First Published: September 2016

Cold miserable days are still with us, here in Victoria. Fishing hasn’t been easy at the best of times, but there have been good fish getting around. My mates and I fished Kerferd Road Pier in St Kilda recently, and have been catching good numbers of squid.

The pier is only a two minute walk from St Kilda main pier. This side of the bay isn’t renowned for squid fishing, but fishing the right areas at the right time is very effective. When it comes to choosing a time, target squid just before dusk and into the dark. There’s a lot of talk about picking the squid jig to use. There’s a lot to take into account – time, amount of light and depth.

On average, Kerferd Road Pier is 3m deep, so using a squid jig size at either 2.5 or 3.0 is perfect. Make sure you fish when the water is clean. You should be able to see your jig right on the bottom. My favourite colour is an orange jig, with a bit of white – they just love it. Yamashita has an awesome range to choose from.

Technique and retrieval are relatively easy, getting it right is the key. The first thing you want to look for is a weedy patch on the bottom – that’s where the squid will be holding. Simply cast your jig until it hits or gets close to the bottom. Give it a couple of twitches and then let it sink again. Your aim is to give the jig as much action as possible. Excite the squid.

Repeat this process all the way back to your feet. Squid may not be the best at fighting when you hook up, but they’re one of the best to eat. Once you hook up to one, keep casting in the same area, because your chances of catching more in that same space of time are good. Keep in mind, the bag limit for squid is ten per person.

Other than squid, we are continuing to pick up good numbers of pinkies and flathead from St Kilda pier, using small soft plastics such as the Zman GrubZ, but it takes longer. Early wake ups have been painful in these cold winter mornings, but to fish the prime time when fish are most likely to feed is worth it.

Many anglers have been sitting on the side of the pier, baitfishing. The main thing is having a good time. So for anyone that wants to wet a line and take a feed home, give St Kilda pier a go. Use a small to medium size bait holder hook, with a bit of mussel as bait. The pier is surrounded by mussel, which has become the main fish food source.